Dr. Shafi says Thank you

Dr. Shafi Shihabdeen who resumed duties this week as a Senior House Officer in Gynecology and Obstetrics Unit at the Kurunegala Teaching Hospital extended his gratitude to his well-wishers for their continued support during the past four years. 

Issuing a message via video, the doctor who was falsely accused of carrying out forced sterilisations on women and faced legal as well as professional trials, as a result, said the past four years have been traumatic through no fault of his own. He said the prayers and good wishes from his supporters, relatives and friends kept him going. “Every up has it’s down,” the doctor said, adding that the support received kept his morale high and helped him to face the challenges. 

A decision of the Health Services Committee of the Public Services Commission recently ordered the Secretary to the Ministry of Health to reinstate Dr. Shihabdeen and reassigned him to the Kurunegala Teaching Hospital. The doctor had posted pictures of his first day back at work dressed in blue scrubs on social media. 

In a letter addressed to the Secretary, the Committee stated that upon reviewing the initial disciplinary inquiry report submitted by the expert panel appointed by the Ministry in December 2021, they determined that the evidence presented did not substantiate the allegations against Dr. Shibadeen.